>> do you recall the exact size? i just want to be able to get them right for you? >> no, i don't know, y'all just guessed, wouldn't you have the measurements there? >> we'll find them. >> now, the pockets when you sit down in the chair, the knife and money comes out so i need at least another inch in the pockets. now, another thing, the crotch, down where your nuts hang is always a little too tight, so when you make them up, give me an inch so i can let it out there because they cut me. just like riding a wire fence. these are almost -- these are the best that i've had anywhere in the united states. but when i gain a little weight, they cut me under there. so leave me -- you never do have much margin there. let's see if you can't leave me about an inch from where the zipper ends, around, back to my bunghole, so i can let it out there if i need to. >> i have heard it before, i have never, ever seen it laid

out with the pictures of him. and to the subtitler who had to actually add in there the burps, i'm sorry. we may be getting lbj's love letters released in time for valentine's day this year, but for valentine's day eve, the "rachel maddow" show gives you president lbj ordering pants in all of its glory. happy valentine's day eve, america, this is how you know i love you. the best new thing in the world. good morning. happy valentine's day. first look, free at last. some 4,000 passengers stuck aboard a carnival cruise ship with few toilets and no power since sunday are pulling into

port right now. pope benedict's sendoff have the faithful on their feet. bloomberg's latest target. plus, the world's largest airline, one billion rides around the world. a skier with a wildly exciting back flip. we'll give ut back story. good morning. 4200 passengers are hoping to set foot on dry land this morning after a disaster at sea. carnival's triumph cruise liner lost power sunday causing it to become stranded with little food and fewer working bathroom. jay gray is live in alabama where the ship is set to dock. jay, good morning. >> reporter: good morning, to you. yeah, it's been described by passengers as a difficult and disgusting trip, one that should end this afternoon as the ship is pulled into the cruise terminal here. a third tug boat joined the crew pulling the cruise liner toward

this dock. >> we've been doing a lot of work to activate the terminal again. we've been doing a lot of logistics, security as well as trying to make this experience one that won't be come better so many for the passengers. >> reporter: more than 3,000 passengers have suffered through a lack of food, air conditioning and working rest rooms. >> the worst part is the rest rooms. there's no water. you can't really flush. so everyone is going in little plastic baggies and putting it outside their rooms. >> the stench is described as overwhelming and inescapable. carnival apologized. >> there's no question that conditions onboard the ship are very challenging. >> reporter: the cruise line canceled the next 12 voyages for triumph. but passengers don't care about future trips, they just want this one to end. >> it's awful. we want our mom home. >> as cell phones lose charge, communication with those onboard has become more difficult. >> your heart sinks.

your stomach knots up. you just want to keel over in a fetal position and go why? why? why now? >> reporter: kim is waiting to pick up her 10-year-old daughter who is on the ship with her em husband. >> and i'm going to hold her like i never held her before. >> reporter: if all goes as planned, that embrace will come this afternoon. >> along with family members, medical teams will be waiting to help any passengers or crew members who may need care coming off the ship. live in mobile, jay gray. back to you. >> thanks so much. if you're booking a flight any time soon, your choice of air carriers got smaller. american airlines and us airways will be formally announcing the merger at 6:30 eastern time this morning. the deal caps a turbulent half decade of bankruptcies and consolidations for the usair line industry. the merger will create the world's biggest airline which will keep the american airlines name. police in california say the manhunt for a fugitive ex-cop is

over. but many question still surrounding the case linger. the county sheriff's office is reiterating the fire in the cabin where christopher dorner was hold up was not intentional. this as the coroner works to identify remains inside the structure. we're learning more about the hours leading up to the deadly standoff when dorner is believed to have taken hostages. a hair rid couple says dorner tied them up and put pillowcases over their heads before fleeing. >> we'll have to go through the evidence. some of that evidence is indicating where the officers -- >> my action would be to run. it was. i actually saw him quicker than him somehow. >> meanwhile, wednesday a funeral was held for one of dorner's alleged victims. michael crane was shot and killed during an ambush last week. 34-year-old was a 11-year veteran and leaves behind a wife and two children. in south africa, gold

medalist sprinter has been arrested after a woman was shot dead at his home. police say 26-year-old pastoria was taken into custody this morning. the 30-year-old victim was his girlfriend and then he may have mistaken her for a burglar. he made history at the london games last year when he became the first double amputee runner to compete on the track at the olympics. >> pope benedict has two weeks left as head of the roman catholic church. the 85-year-old pontiff celebrated his final public mass at the vatican. he was given a long standing ovation as he prepares to step down on february 28th, almost eight years after he took command as leader of more than $1.2 billion catholics. you probably know it is valentine's day, you may not know that today is the 15th anniversary of b day, a movement to raise awareness about

violence against women. one in three women on the planet will be victims of rape or violence in their lifetime. v day organizers ask folks around the world to dance to their song. break the chain in support of ending violence against those billion women. thousands are already rising up in manila today showing their support with their feet. and that's a good cause. now here's your first look at this morning's dish of scrambled politics. the state of north carolina's republican controlled legislature has voted to cut unemployment benefits by 35%. the state has the nation's fifth highest unemployment rate at 9.2%. just what america needs, another super pack. newrepublican.org is the first to rebuild the gop after the 2012 election. marco rubio is getting tons of attention for drinking water during the gop response to president obama's state of the union speech. he is catching in. for a $25 donation to his

political action committee, the reclaim america pack will send you an official marco rubio water bottle. the new website pundittracker.com rates predictses on everything from politics to sports to finance. if you're a gambler, the site says don't put your money on dick morris or pat buchanan because they both have f ratings. the tv ratings are in for the state of the union address. it was watched for 33.5 million that, is the lowest number since bill clinton's last address in 2000 seen by two million fewer. the president will join google for the latest a series of fireside hangouts. it's a 21st century take on franklin roosevelt's famous radio fireside chats to talk about the state of the union address. and in north carolina wednesday, president obama talked about life after the white house. >> after this whole presidency thing, well, we're looking for a little spot to, yeah -- come on

down. play a little golf. do a little hiking, fishing, barbecue. >> and that's your morning dish of scrambled politics. now for a look at the national weather, here's bill karins. >> he'll never have to campaign again. he's already thinking about life after the white house. >> that has to be a relief, right? win or lose, horrible. good morning, everyone. valentine's day is herement we have a little snow to cover the ground in a few spots of portions of pennsylvania, new jersey and then right through southern new england. this wasn't a lot. most of the cities were warm enough that it melted on the pavement and it's gone. that is it. a quick shot. it didn't produce much besides beautiful snowflakes yesterday especially around bethesda, maryland. we get a shot of cold air. there is no big storms between now and the weekend. we are going to see a change in the temperatures. it's been mild lately. it's going to continue that way until about friday. then the cold air plunges down.

this is what it looks like on sunday. what's different about this one is it dips to the deep south. usually when we get to the middle of february, late february, sometimes the cold air doesn't make it to the south anymore. who knows? maybe this is the last shot of cold air for new georgia and carolinas. up from the great lakes into new england, you're going to feel significant change. now that storm that's going to be off the coast, i mentioned the last couple days it remains off the coast. still an ocean storm. it may help bring some colder air south. that's about it. don't expect any snow this upcoming weekend. temperatures will take a big dip. detroit, you're in the 40s today. 30s, friday. saturday's, highs only in the 20s. that's a little preview of what's to come. today though, not bad everyone from d.c. northward to atlanta. tomorrow it's going to be one of the warmest days we're going to see for a little while. >> that's good news. good news for romance and valentine's day across the country. thanks so much, bill. members of the kennedy clan arrested outside the white house. we'll have details. plus, the sex quiz. who is more satisfied when it

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the pentagon will rollout medals for members of the military that aren't on the front lines. it will be awarded to remote pilots of unmanned predator drones. kennedy was at the white house wednesday this time in handcuffs. he was one of four dozen activists arrested in a rally against the keystone pipeline. his 18-year-old son connor and daryl hannah were also taken into custody. michael bloomberg wants a citywide ban on plastic foam containers. it is set to target food packaging including cups and plates. georgia, things got heated between two politicians during a debate on live television. you can see two members of parliament clashing on the set. the topic of the debate, ways to

reduce political violence. and on this valentine's day, i village is out with a new survey on sex and relationships. it turns out 68% of men say they married the person they had the best sex of their lives with but only 45% of women echo that sentiment. a new government study finds more younger women are using the morning after pill than ever before. about one in nine females ages 15-44 say they use the emergency contraception. that's up from 4% a decade ago. experts say the increased popularity is likely the result of the pill being easier to get. over an wall street, we'll see if investors are in the mood to love any stocks on valentine's day. the s&p 500 has been up 39% of the day on february 14th. big companies reporting earnings, general motors, pepsi he could and rio tint yoe. cisco and whole foods beat earnings estimates. investors sold on their lower outlooks.

best buy also gave a report that ceo may not be taking the company private. new numbers show foreclosures dropped 7% in january. that's down 28% over last year. the u.s. post master general urged congress yesterday not to force mail delivery on saturday telling senators, the postal service is losing $25 mi2$25 mi day. time warner is in talks to sell three magazines to the meredith corporation for $2 billion. microsoft founder bill gates and carlos slim are teaming up to tackle world hunger with a new $25 million complex to research seed development. jb power and associates says lexus, porsche and lincoln are 2013's most dependable vehicles. the largest flower auction in the netherlands says it sells 100 million roses and another 100 million tulips on valentines week. and ups is delivering on the

flowers along with the chocolates and teddy bears, of course. if you're looking for a romantic get away, these trip adviser top five picks, napa valley, hawaii, santa fe, new mexico, post ranch nin big sur and another wine country winner, hohn your mansion. history in the making. original work from one of america's first known african-american writers. plus, if you're a pack rat or a hoarder, this next story is for you. you're watching "first look" on msnbc. and even fewer that make moms happy too. with wholesome noodles and bite sized chicken, nothing brings you together like chicken noodle soup from campbell's. it's amazing what soup can do. a regular guy with an irregular heartbeat. the usual, bob? not today. [ male announcer ] bob has afib: atrial fibrillation not caused by a heart valve problem, a condition that puts him at greater risk for a stroke. [ gps ] turn left.

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joining me now is bob franken. let's start with a recap of the statest union. president obama called for raising the minimum wage. speaker boehner came out against the preposal saying it will make it harder for small businesses to hire what might be more workers. what do you think the political ramifications of that might be for the gop? >> well, the gop has consistently been against the minimum wage. they have always used the same argument that speaker baner is using which is it will have a negative effect on unemployment. the unfortunate thing about that is that same argument could justify paying employees nothing. >> and as we mentioned viewership, we mentioned earlier, viewership for the state of the union is the lowest that it's been for 13 years.

what do you make of that? >> westminster dog show. i mean i don't know about you. i was switching back and forth. >> banana joe is pretty compelling. >> it really was. i was among those who was very unhappy that golden retriever has never won. possibly could have won had he not stopped for a drink of water. >> do you think this signals that people are less engaged and less interested because it's second term? they feel like they know what the president has in mind? >> i think that really people got such a negative view of government over the years. it's a sort of what ever attitude. >> we also mentioned earlier there is a new site out pundittracker keeping tabs on predictions by political bun di pundits. is it going to make people nervous before they start making predictions. >> i can only speak for myself and say i'm incredibly nervous. i never wanted to be accountable for that. >> i can't tell if you're joking or not.

>> of course i'm joking. >> all right. thank you so much for being here. we really appreciate your insight. and here's other stories that caught our eye this morning. we start in texas. pack rats everywhere beware. one houston home went up in smoke afteren unattended grill sparked a fire on the property. the home was filled with several feet of clutter making it hard to get around and secure the area. the home own her previously been given a court order to clean up the house as it was a danger to him aself and others. a student was shocked to forgot a poem by jupiter hannon. it was buried in the yale university archives. the poe sem first of hammonds found since 1915 and gives new look foo his beliefs on slavery. no time for ashes. no problem. congregations in several areas catered to the schedules of the members by providing speedy ash delivery. some set up shop in local businesses and one louisiana reverend offered drive by blessings so people wouldn't even have to get out of their

cars. drivers in boston found creative ways to save their parking spaces after last weekend's blizzard left so many without spots. parking savers evolved from cones and chairs to christmas decorations, toys, and everything in between. moving now to sports, first to the nba. tony parker drove down the lane and kicked it out to leonard who made a three-point shot with 2.9 seconds to go. a 96-95 spurs win over cleveland. an upset in college basketball. syracuse follows to unranked uconn. in the last regular season meeting in the big east before syracuse leaves for the acc, the connecticut huskies had a strong second half and got the 66-58 victory. and second ranked duke made a comeback in the second half and pulled out a 73-68 win over home state rival north carolina. on coach k's 66th birthday. there was internet buzz over a photo on twitter of the duke blue devils mascot's head displayed on a stick above the student's door on the north

carolina campus. but the mascot head was returned to duke before the game. >> marcus, a special needs student who is a manager for the basketball team in el paso, texas, was the focus of true sportsmanship. his coach put him in for the closing minutes of a game and a member of the other team passed him the ball so he could make the final shot. what a nice moment. swedish golfer daniela homequist was bidden on the ankle by a black widow spider. she used a golf stick to squeeze out the ven imand then went on to continue to play. a swedish skier in switzerland has an amazing run which includes a daufrpg us are ach lanch and a risky back flip as a massive snow threatened to bury him. he made it out and safely finished the run. is funny man will farrell venturing into a new arena? and band camp's allison hannah

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i hear the trend for valentine's day is couples saying they don't have to get each other anything because they love each other every day. to all the guys out there watching, i want to say it's a trap! buy something tomorrow! >> channeling a little marco rubio. what do you do in your spare

time if you're a rich and famous actor? if you're will farrell, you kick shaquille o'neal out of a lakers game. we don't know why he did that but we're certainly glad he did. american pie and how i met your mother star has obtained a restraining order against a man who claims threatens to kill her and her family. the man was recently released from a mental hospital. lady gaga canceled the remainder of her world tour due to health issues. justin bieber wanted to thank lauren michaels for inviting him on the show. he did so with a picture. that was a nice sentiment. the only problem, justin may think that his name is lauren like the girl. and we move from a current teen heartthrob to a '90s teen heartthr heartthrob. jonathan taylor thomas will be starring on "last man standing." jtt has been keeping a low profile only doing big parts on television. his new gig marke